Yemen : UN releases emergency funds to help people trapped by fighting

The United Nations has released over $200,000 in emergency funding to meet health needs in northern Yemen , the scene of deadly fighting between Government troops and rebels.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has received the funds from the Central Emergency Relief Fund (CERF) to help civilians uprooted by clashes in the Al-Malaheed area of Saada province, which borders Saudi Arabia and is a relatively remote and inaccessible region, where the violence has been concentrated.

WHO will use the influx of funds to provide health services, especially for women and children, as well as treat diarrhoea and acute respiratory infections.

The agency has already sent enough medical supplies to treat 200 people who have sustained injuries in the fighting, with plans to send more supplies next week.

Staff have been dispatched from WHO's regional office in Cairo , Egypt , to Yemen , and the agency is working with the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) to coordinate a combined health and nutrition response to the situation.

Yesterday, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon voiced concern about escalating hostilities in northern Yemen , appealing to all sides in the clashes to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian assistance to affected areas, his spokesperson Marie Okabe said following questions from journalists.

He also voiced hope that the situation in would soon be resolved by peaceful means and that the fighting will stop.